Visualizing plasma waves and laser-matter interactions with few-cycle probing

This paper will present recent experimental and numerical results concerning the application of a few-cycle optical probing diagnostic to laser-driven laser-matter interaction experiments. The well-established probing technique will be used to investigate the formation of a laser-generated plasma, identifying the dominant ionization mechanism, the generation of a laser-driven plasma wave and the subsequent evolution of the plasma after the main pulse has passed. Numerical results will be shown supporting the experimental findings.